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Bodie Island Prescribed Burn and Information Meeting

Superintendent Barclay Trimble announced today that as part of the Outer Banks Group Fire Management Plan, a prescribed burn is anticipated in the Bodie Island District of Cape Hatteras National Seashore.Weather permitting and contingent upon sequestration requirements the burn is anticipated to take place in late March or early April.The burn unit will consist of approximately 2,061 acres, located west of NC Highway 12, south of Whalebone Junction and north of the Navy Tower Access Road.

The intent of the burn is to reduce fuel loading in the area as well as reduce the amount of brushy/woody vegetation in an attempt to return the vegetational composition to a more historically accurate pattern.In order to safely accomplish the burn, some mechanical reduction of fuels will be conducted to establish fire breaks along the access road to the Navy Tower, the power lines on the southeast portion of the burn unit, and the northern boundary of the burn unit.All breaks will be constructed utilizing a combination of a light weight, tracked mowers and hand tools.Ignition will be accomplished utilizing hand ignition.

A public informational meeting regarding this project will be held on Wednesday, March 13, 2013, beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the meeting room of Nags Head Fire Station 16, in Nags Head, North Carolina.